Getting ready for innovation and exponential change or maintaining the humdrum? A look down the road of education (Part 2)

Will schools significantly change or are we in danger of another generation where we tinker with an outdated model? Technology has the potential to shift the way we do school making learning has become more accessible, more mobile and more personalized. What are some schools doing now and how might schools adapt in the future?

Technology is impacting schools. Students rely more on technology than teachers for information. In fact, students tend to use YouTube more than other search engines to learn. School and learning are now highly mobile, accessible and personalized. The web and cloud computing means “school” can be accessed anywhere, anytime. Yet, schools look and feel industrial and impersonal and consequently students tend to feel disconnected and disengaged. The future will see schools leveraging mobile technology to support a more personalized approach (vs. standardized as in the old factory model)  of the learning environment.

A more personalized approach is needed so that the individual and community needs are considered. In a world that can increasingly cater for individual and diverse needs, education needs to accept that one size does not fit all. A school culture that emphasizes this will enable relevance and rigor in the classroom, and higher levels of student engagement.

For example, some schools around the country have ‘dashboards’ for each student where their personal progress is monitored in real time. Feedback is readily available and data can be extrapolated with ease. MAP testing is an example of how technology can be leveraged to build or advanced individual student’s skill sets. This allows the student, teacher, and parents to customize the learning for the child whether it be the need for reinforcement, redirection or moving on to the next topic or level. Students can create and navigate their own learning journey, tap into multiple online resources (like Kahn Academy) and use the teacher as a coach or facilitator.

Schools will continue to question the emphasis on standardized testing as the need for curiosity, ingenuity, passion, and curiosity grows. Education will move from information acquisition (the known) to knowledge creation (beyond the known). The trend is already towards the inventive use of knowledge and how people can add value to what is already know. Thus, schools will need to create intellectual entrepreneurs. Schools will need to explicitly teach the skills of collaboration, problem-solving, and communication. These are not new skills but there are greater demands now placed on the need to graduate students with these skills. Technology will be used to support these shifts to enable students to tackle real-world problems that may be occurring in their classroom, their school, their town or even globally (see an upcoming blog for what this looks like). 

Therefore, schools will need to develop an intensive and ongoing professional development program to better support teachers to deepen their understanding and expand their skill set on how to teach for the 21^st century, or in other words, nurture “future-ready students”. This is unknown territory for teachers, administrators, and parents where student learning outcomes are more about habits of mind (creativity, ingenuity, innovation, collaboration) than knowledge. That means the curricula, assessment, classes and the school day will look different. There will be greater emphasis on project- and place-based work, integration of classes, connections with the outside world and blended learning (see my next blog for insights into this topic). A school will also be more intentional about students creating connections, developing creative solutions to real problems and encouraging collaboration; skills prerequisite for employment. This will also be key to the survival and advancement of our society.

Schools may maintain the humdrum over the next few years, tinker with an outdated system, and continue to prepare students for a world gone by. Let’s hope though that schools do adapt to the changing needs of the students and the world and that courageous and thoughtful leaders see the role technology plays in this shift. Educators are passionate about developing future-ready students with the capacity to make a positive contribution to their world. Training, support, and high-quality professional development will help our teachers navigate the significant change our schools need.

Picture source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/guides/zqkjp39

Getting ready for innovation and exponential change or maintaining the humdrum?

Getting ready for innovation and exponential change or maintaining the humdrum?

A look down the road of education

(part 1)

Yes, we live in an age of disruption. Yes, we live in an exponential age. Yes, not much will change in education in the next 5 to 10 years. Should they? Yes! But, despite global forces, rapid technological changes and accelerated change, schools will look, sound and feel the same. Change in schools moves at a glacial pace. The question therefore should not be “How will schools be different in 5-10 years?” but “How should schools be different 5-10 years from now to ensure we are meeting the needs of the students?” Or, “How do we develop future-ready students?”

What are the trends that could affect education?

Technology – Preparing students for life in an ongoing technological revolution

This is the most pervasive and powerful trend for education. Classrooms are a pedagogical jigsaw as schools become an ecosystem with a variety of ways to learn (known as blended learning). Schools will have to give students the opportunity to learn online as preparation for later learning. At least one course should be taken in their school career. Importantly, students must be taught how to navigate the web, research and think critically. Mining for information, checking sources, synthesizing arguments and creating their own ideas will be a challenge for educators. Students will be exposed to coding, web design, and how to properly manage their online footprint and personal brand.

MOOCS have not been as impactful as first imagined. It seems that completing an online course requires a huge amount of self-discipline. We are essentially social creatures and like to learn in groups, even face-to-face. This may change with the current generation who feels more comfortable interacting and forming relationships online. Online study will impact Colleges far more than schools. Colleges are becoming too expensive and online colleges are increasingly more popular. Students can hold jobs while completing their degrees. It makes more economic sense.

Schools will be inundated with increasingly sophisticated ICT tools. Artificial Intelligence (robots interacting seamlessly with students using natural languages) and Virtual Reality (and in textbooks as they can offer rich and current 3D content) will play a role in classrooms with technology increasingly integrated into the classroom. Significant infrastructure and access to technology will be needed. Teachers will become increasingly comfortable with the use of technology and mobile learning and be able to use it to enhance the student experience and critical thinking.

Neurosciences will impact teaching as this becomes the fastest growing science. This is the branch of study that deals directly with how the brain learns. Will we be able to ignore these sources of information that equips teachers and students to learn better than ever before? 

Image source: https://www.alamy.com/reaching-a-crossroads-having-to-choose-between-stagnation-or-change-in-future-symbolized-by-two-feet-standing-on-two-different-colors-with-arrows-on-p-image177988506.html

Leading with Ubuntu in Mind

 Many people commented on a recent blog post of mine on the notion of Ubuntu and they wanted to know more. Coincidentally, I have recently returned from a trip to South Africa where I visited Island where Mandela was detained for 18 of his 27 prison years. I have visited before but this time my wife and I took my three children. It was again a moving experience and, combined with reading more books on Mandela and his fellow political prisoners, a deeper awareness of the harshness of their treatment and the resultant sheer courage, grace and fortitude of these men on the island was made more poignant. Despite their treatment, these men held themselves to a higher moral standard. They refused to hate their wardens, and sought to build relationships with them. The idea of Ubuntu was forever in their thinking. “I can only be great when you are great” and the idea that each belongs to a greater whole and the role of the individual is to build capacity in other and not break the other down pervaded their thoughts

What does this mean for leadership and innovation? What does it look like in an organisation? These are some of the questions people have been asking me. When we give workshops on Ubuntu these are some of the practical take ways we leave people with. Ubuntu leaders:

·      Know and engage with the strengths of each team member to unleash creativity and innovation. Leaders then build powerful teams around unique strengths and qualities. The Ubuntu leader seeks not to control but to work with the individuals to provide a platform to enhance their strengths and therefore their contributions. Work with your people to identify their strengths, and share them with the team. We have people write a paper of 20 bullet points entitled, ‘How to get the best out of me’. We also have people list their top three strengths on cards and place them on their desks for all to see. The cards are entitled, ‘What you should know about me’. This clarity creates trust, speeds up interactions and promotes a positive workplace culture.

·      Allow mistakes. For people to innovate they need to be trusted. I have worked with organizations who celebrate risks, the learning that comes from each risk or mistake thereby creating a culture of innovation. I urge leaders to utilize a “Yes and” mentality so that ideas are not shut down but challenged and built upon. Playing the We also play a “Yes and…” game where ideas are opened and innovative solutions are found.

·      Create clarity of purpose for their team members. This increases mental and physical well-being and enhances resiliency which is a key characteristic of people willing to challenge the status quo and innovate. Teaching leaders to do this creates a greater focus and resilience in their teams.

·      Listen. In the words of Stephen Covey, they “Seek first to understand and then to be understood.” They engage in empathic listening truly aiming to understand and appreciate the other’s perspective. Each person is seen and respected.

·      Ask these questions of their people: “What are you working on and how can I help?” This servant-leadership approach values engaging each person in utilizing their strengths. The leader constantly models these behaviours.

·      Are customer-aware. They relentlessly question, “Who are our customers and how can we better serve them?” Ubuntu is not us and them. It is all-inclusive that means putting the customer experience in the centre.

·      Know that an Ubuntu mindset is good for business. Any company that is a great place to work typically finds itself profitable. People come to work ready to give to their colleagues and customers delivering strong results and increasing customer and worker loyalty.

Ubuntu is not an organizational program. It is a mindset that represents a values-based approach to leadership. It allows processes to function more effectively and improves the quality of work life. It shows how to engage with others in a more meaningful, human way. It is a paradigm which becomes a way of being.

Organizations need leaders that lead with gratitude, humility, grace and who understand that success comes from unleashing the greatness in others.

Peter Dry

January 2017

 Picture Source: https://www.africanexponent.com/post/ubuntu-applying-the-african-cultural-concept-to-business-75